Forever Thank You
by roo17
Summary: song fic. This is a little something I thought that Ace would say to Whitebeard and Luffy. Enjoy and thank you for reading.


Forever Thank You

**Summary**: This is a partial song fic. I thought these next few lyrics would kinda be something Ace would maybe say. So I hope you enjoy.  
**Warning**: Character death. :'( And AU.

**Song**: _Forever  
_**Artist**: _Red_

_**"Thank you."  
**__**-Led Zeppelin  
**_XxXxX

_You gave me so much more than I could ever ask for_

Ace looked over his shoulder at the sound of approaching footsteps. It was that kid Luffy Garp always talked about. Ace looked back at the ocean, hugging his knees. The young boy sat down next to him, his straw hat filled with grapes and berries. He held out his hat towards Ace, a big grin on his face. "You want some? I picked extra just incase you were hungry." Ace furrowed his brows a little at the boy.

"I don't even know you, so why are you being so kind to me?" The boy popped a grape in his mouth.

"'Cause you always look so alone and sad and have no friends. Plus you seem angry all the time. I thought maybe all you needed was a friend. Here, have a strawberry!" Before Ace could even protest, the young boy shoved the said piece of fruit into his mouth. Ace chewed and swallowed, finding the berry actually quite delicious. "Hehe, did you like it?"

"…yes. Thank you."

"So what's your name?"

"Ace… Yours?"

"Monkey D. Luffy! I'm the one who's gonna be king of the pirates!" Ace stared in awe at Luffy. How could this tiny kid have such strong ambitions? "You wanna go out to see with me one day? We'll have all sorts of adventures! And you and me can become brothers!" Ace was in disbelief. He just met this kid five minutes ago and he's already talking about becoming brothers? What nonsense! But instead of yelling at the kid, Ace felt calm and warm. And _loved_. He smiled as he turned his attention to the calm blue horizon.

"Luffy?"

"Hm?" The boy looked over at Ace, his mouth filled with food.

"Thank you."

XxxxX

Whitebeard held out his hand to Ace who kneeling on the ground, panting and exhausted. "Become my son." Ace looked up at the old man like he had a grown a second head.

"Don't screw with me!" Ace thought he was kidding, he really did. He thought for sure the man would eventually either _a)_ kill him or _b)_ turn him in to the marines. But instead, he didn't. He kept Ace on his ship, his offer still open. Even after Ace tried to murder him more than a hundred times, he still didn't even show any signs he would try and kill him. It wasn't until he found out the reason why so many people became his sons did he finally give into the offer. He would be loved, to feel like he should live. And Whitebeard gave him those feelings. He truly loved him like a son, even when he knew his father was Gol D. Roger. He was still loved. One day as Ace was standing beside his father watching his crew members dance and party, Ace closed his eyes and smiled.

"Whitebeard…" The old man continued to stare at his sons, though still keeping his ears open to hear what Ace had to say.

"Thank you."

XxxxX

And here Ace was now: on a scaffold ready to be executed. He watched as his comrades fell by the marines' hands; their blood covering the ground. He hated that he felt completely useless. He didn't ask for this, any of this. He didn't ask to have a brother, he didn't ask to have a father, or a crew that was like family. He didn't ask to be loved. But he got it anyway. And though he was sad to see his family fall before his very eyes, he couldn't have been more happy. They wanted him to _live_. Every single one of them did. And right now, at this moment in time, he also wanted himself to live.

"Thank you…" he whispered under his breath.

_But I turned and followed a road that left me hollow_

Ace knew he shouldn't have turned around. He knew he shouldn't have fallen for such a stupid trick. But he couldn't help it. Someone had insulted his father's pride, and he wouldn't allow that. He found it foolish how he tried to attack Akainu instead of running with his brother. But he just couldn't stop himself. And now here he was: standing in front of Luffy with a fist of lava through his stomach. But he didn't mind the agonizing pain. As long as his only brother was safe, he didn't mind. He was pretty sure Whitebeard wasn't happy right now, and neither was Luffy or Marco or Gramps. He fell into his brother's arms and simply stayed like that for a while in silence. To some, you may say he just threw everything away; his life, his family, his freedom. But to Ace at the moment, he couldn't have felt more free.

_And still you waited for me to come back home, you brought me home._

Ace's breaths were shaky and short as he held onto his brother, who was still in shock. "Old Man, and all you guys... Even though I've been a good for nothing all my life... Even though I carry the blood of a demon in me... You guys still loved me... Thank you so much!" He couldn't have felt more at home than he did in that moment in his brother's arms.

_You chased me down and broke in just when I was done believing. Spun me round so close now, I can feel you breathing_

If it wasn't for Luffy, he never would have been able to love anything. If it wasn't for Luffy, he wouldn't have lived, or even existed. If it wasn't for Luffy, he would be dead. He would be nothing. But because Luffy was so headstrong about breaking down Ace's defensive walls, he was able to become his friend. And Ace owed his entire _life_ to his brother, to his first friend. That was probably the number one reason he would never let Luffy die. Luffy gave him life, and now it was Ace's turn to give Luffy life to fulfill his life long dream of becoming the Pirate King. Ace's sad face turned to a smile as he felt the world around him start to white-out, and fell from his only brother's tight embracing arms.

_Sunlight burns inside and I, I feel so alive_

Ace was happy, warm, bright. He felt more alive than ever before. He took in a deep breath and kept his eyes closed. He felt so warm inside, as if the sun itself was inside him. Was this what it was like to truly want to be alive, to enjoy life the way you're supposed to? He let the warm whiteness embrace his body and feel the warmth on his smooth skin. It felt as if he was inside bliss itself, inside joy; wrapping it up all around him and snuggling in it's thick warm, fuzzy blanket. It was one of the best feelings he ever felt.

_And help me now, tell me how_

Warm, gentle, smooth, small hands cupped his face as he stood (floated?) there in the whiteness. He then felt rougher, more masculine hands rest on his shoulders. He didn't dare open his eyes, afraid it would all just suddenly disappear. He then heard his mother's soothing voice echo around him. "My dear son, Ace. Welcome home, my child." Then, a deep but light (almost cheerful) came after hers.

"Welcome home, Ace. It's so nice to see you." The voice rumbled with laughter as the hands that were once on his shoulders now held him in a tight embrace. When that hug was done, he was embraced by a more petit figure, one that smelled a little sweeter. He guessed it was his mother.

"We'll see you in a while, Ace. We love you…" The warmth returned to him as he felt both presence' gone. The thick blanket of joy and bliss returned twice as potent now and Ace let a wide smile cross him as he gave a laugh to himself.

_How can this last forever? Forever…_

He continued to laugh, like he had all the time in the world to do so. And it wasn't one of those fake laughs, it was a real, hearty laugh. One that rumbled through his chest and echoed all around him. He opened his eyes and looked upwards, where the sky should have been. He took the time to catch his breath as he threw his arms out, just standing there taking everything in. The warmth, the love, the greatness, the enlightenment, the happiness, everything. And as he closed his eyes once again and fell through the whiteness with that smile on his face, he gave one last thought before he fell into total happiness and joy.

_'Whitebeard… Luffy…'_

He gave a chuckle and a grin.

_'Thank you.'_

_XxXxX  
__**Just a little something that popped into my mind the day ch. 574 came out. It took me almost a year to finally type it out. I hope you somewhat enjoyed it! Thank you all soooo much!**_

_The darkness I liveth, the darkness I love  
__~roo the vampire_


End file.
